About THE FILM

On April 30, 2014, Dontre Hamilton, a black, unarmed man diagnosed with schizophrenia, was shot 14 times and killed by a Milwaukee police officer responding to a non-emergency wellness check in a popular downtown park.

Filmed over the course of three years in the direct aftermath of Dontre's death, this intimate verite documentary follows his family as they struggle to find answers and challenge a criminal justice system stacked against them. Offering a painfully realistic glimpse inside a movement born out of tragedy, this explosive documentary takes a behind the scenes look at one of America’s most pressing social issues.

Director Erik Ljung has meticulously crafted a piece of essential viewing, one that has much to contribute to our understanding of the ongoing epidemic of police violence. We get to know Dontre, and watch as his family transforms into activists. We see the complex layers of engagement when a mourning family’s desires diverge from those of fellow activists, and feel their frustration and anger with institutional responses.

The setting may be Milwaukee, but it could just as well be anywhere—and it’s a film every concerned citizen here should see.

Filmmakers

Erik Ljung is a freelance Producer and Director of Photography currently based in the midwest. He has produced content and short documentaries for the New York Times, VICE News, Al Jazeera, PBS and the Wall Street Journal. In 2016 he won a midwest Emmy for his work on public television's Wisconsin Foodie. His cinematography can be seen on CNN’s The 414’s, which premiered at Sundance, and Almost Sunrise slated to air on POV in 2017. He is a former Nohl Fellow, and a two-time Brico Forward Fund recipient for his documentary work.

Michael T. Vollmann’s editing credits include HBO, ESPN 30 for 30, CBS. He most recently directed the documentary “The 414s” (CNN Films) which premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. Michael D.P.’d the feature doc “The Jeffrey Dahmer Files” (IFC) (2012 SXSW) which became a New York Times Critics’ Pick.